For those who have visited a Carilion Clinic facility or the Hotel Roanoke or signed up a child for golf lessons with First Tee of Roanoke Valley, there’s one man in particular to thank: Tom Robertson.
Known as a humble leader, Robertson played a pivotal role in shaping Roanoke’s economic landscape. Despite his significant contributions, he consistently credited collaborative efforts for these achievements.
Robertson died Friday in Naples, Florida, where he and his wife retired about 20 years ago. He was 81 years old.
He served as president and CEO of Carilion from 1986 to 2001. He orchestrated the merger of the community hospitals, which later became Carilion Health System, established the Carilion Biomedical Institute and laid the groundwork for the Virginia Tech Carilion School of Medicine. These efforts helped transition Roanoke from a rail industry hub to a center of medical and technological innovation, according to Bob Herbert, Roanoke’s city manager during Robertson’s tenure.
“He used his role to move the Roanoke region forward,” Herbert said.
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Robertson was born in Roanoke and attended National Business College, now a campus of American National University, in Salem. He started his career as a certified public accountant at the local firm of Anderson and Reed, where he managed the financial records of Roanoke-area hospitals, according to a statement about his death that was shared with Carilion staff.
He joined Roanoke Memorial Hospital in 1969 as comptroller and eventually became chief financial officer. He was named Carilion’s CEO in 1986.
Herbert first met Robertson when he began looking for potential partnerships that would revitalize the old Hotel Roanoke.
Norfolk Southern owned the property at the time but had largely abandoned it, Herbert said. The corporation planned to sell it to be turned into a nursing home.
The city tried several times to broker a deal with the railroad, but the negotiations were unsuccessful.
While Carilion never invested in the hotel project, Robertson stayed involved, helping Herbert to bring Virginia Tech into the deal.
Even though Robertson was in the early stages of his leadership role at Carilion, he was always available to help Herbert navigate the city’s relationship with Virginia Tech, and the deal rolled forward with Robertson’s coaching. In 1989, the university signed on to be an investor, leading to the reopening of the Hotel Roanoke and building of the adjacent conference center.
“Tom Robertson continued to be a kind of business coach that I relied heavily on,” Herbert said.
From there, Carilion’s relationship with Virginia Tech evolved.
In 1999, biotechnology was growing fast, and Robertson wanted Carilion to be a part of it.
The Carilion Biomedical Institute was established with an initial $20 million investment from Carilion with the idea that it would bridge the gap between laboratory research and marketable medical applications.
Virginia Tech and University of Virginia originally joined this pursuit, with plans to contribute a combined $10 million to open a 50,000-square-foot building for its headquarters, according to a Roanoke Times article published in 2018. While progress was slow and UVa eventually dropped out, the endeavor solidified the relationship between Carilion and Virginia Tech. The two would later come together to form the Virginia Tech Carilion School of Medicine and Research Institute. (The latter part is today known as the Fralin Biomedical Research Institute at VTC.)
Robertson’s commitment to improving the community extended beyond health care.
In 1984, he established the Scott Roberson Memorial Golf Tournament. The annual event, now in its 41st year, honored the memory of his son, Scott, a promising young golfer who died at age 14 from infectious mononucleosis.
In its first year, only about 40 kids participated, said Debbie Ferguson, administrator for the tournament. Now, about 500 applications come flooding in from all over the world to fill the 165 slots.
The funds generated from the tournament have helped build First Tee of Roanoke Valley, a youth development organization that teaches golf to kids, helping them build character and values, according to its website.
“Tom said he wanted to put a golf club in the hand of every junior in the Roanoke Valley,” Ferguson said.
Robertson and his wife traveled back to Roanoke every year for the tournament until 2023. Then, Robertson’s health declined.
“He will definitely be remembered for what he has given back to his community. He was very truthful with people. He really thought things out. And he thought highly of others,” Ferguson said.
